Delaware in the Civil War

Delaware in the Civil War

Delaware was a slave state during the Civil War (1861-1865), but it remained loyal to the Union and it voted against secession on January 3, 1861. As the governor stated, "Delaware had been the first state to embrace the Union by ratifying the Constitution and would be the last to leave it." While most Delawareans who fought in the war served in the regiments of the state, there were many who served in the Confederate Army in Maryland and Virginia. Delaware is notable for being the only slave state from which no Confederate regiments or militia units were assembled.

Delaware Governor William Burton (January 18, 1859 – January 20, 1863) was a democrat, but he maintained a cautious politcal stance. The aged Burton (October 16, 1789 – August 5, 1866) tried to steer a course down the middle of all the competing interests. Like a majority in the state, he was strongly sympathetic towards the South, and a strong opponent of abolition, but he opposed Delaware’s possible secession.

Although Delaware, a Border State, embraced the Union, it nominally supported President Lincoln. The state was not a Republican stronghold, and in the presidential elections of 1860 and 1864, the state supported the “Peace Platform” offered by the Democrats. In the presidential election of 1860, Delaware voted as follows: (D) John C. Breckinridge (7,339: 45.5%); John Bell (3,888: 24.1%); Abraham Lincoln (3,822: 23.7%); and Stephen Douglas (1,066: 6.6%). The total vote count for Delaware was 16,115, and it heavily favored Breckinridge.

As the war dragged on, the Peace Platform became more appealing to the war-weary masses.

In 1864, with 16,922 total votes cast, the state preferred (D) George McClellan (8,767: 51.8%) over Abraham Lincoln (8,155: 48.2%). In 1864, furthermore, the war-weary states of Kentucky and New Jersey voted for McClellan, and, while New York cast a total of 730,721 votes, Lincoln won the Empire State by a meager 6,749 votes.



Civil War

Delaware, according to the 1860 U.S. census, had a free population (including blacks) of 110,418 and an additional 1,798 in the bonds of slavery. The government of Delaware never formally abolished slavery; however, a large portion of the state's slaveowners voluntarily freed their slaves. Continue to Delaware Civil War History.

Delaware, considering its small population, nevertheless, provided fighting men to the Union cause during the Civil War. The best sources within the State archives indicate that there were 11,236 white soldiers, 94 sailors and marines and a total of 954 black soldiers from the First State. A total of 12,284 Delawareans fought for the Union out of total state population (male and female) of slightly more than 110,000. This number includes all branches of service: artillery, infantry, cavalry, as well as marines and sailors. To the Union Army the state contributed 9 regiments and 4 companies of infantry, 8 companies of cavalry, and 1 company and 1 battery of artillery. As a result of the Civil War, Delaware suffered nearly 1,000 in killed and hundreds more returned home wounded.

Was Delaware a Northern or Southern state? Neither, it was a Border State that sided principally with the Union. Present-day, however, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Delaware is indeed a Southern state. Delaware, unlike other Border States, did not experience any battles on its soil. The state during the war was known principally for its imprisonment of Confederate soldiers at Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island.

Because of the small population in 1860, Delaware, compared to other Northern states, contributed only a small number of troops to the Union Army. The Delaware regiments, however, fought bravely from minor engagements to major battles such as Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg, consequently, witnessed sixty-three Medal of Honor recipients, including three soldiers from Delaware. See also State of Delaware during the American Civil War (1861-1865) and Border State Civil War History.

What Caused the Civil War? From Slavery to States' Rights to Southern Secession

What Caused the Civil War? Slavery? States' Rights? Secession?

Foreward

Was President Abraham Lincoln moot or silent about "What caused the Civil War? No. However, one will never hear the Abraham Lincoln admirer quote Lincoln (aka Honest Abe or Father Abraham) on what he literally stated regarding "What caused the Civil War." Why does the Lincoln fanatic always insist on quoting anything, everything and anyone else? Simple. Because the truth doesn't adhere to the person's view of Lincoln. Regarding the Lincoln worshipper, just ask one question: Why doesn't said person quote President Lincoln on what he literally said and wrote relating to "What caused the Civil War"? The Lincoln lover will always quote one or two Southern documents, out of context, in order to support and purport flawed views and ideologies. And why do they intentionally avoid Lincoln's very own documents, letters, and speeches? Because everything indicts Lincoln. Remember, Lincoln, as commander-in-chief, went to war, the bloodiest war in America's history and without the consent of Congress, so Lincoln is accountable and his words must be considered. Whether it be referred to as a war, rebellion or conflict, the reader will examine Lincoln's very own words regarding "What caused the Civil War."

Introduction

Regarding "What caused the Civil War," the President of the United States -- as commander-in-chief and chief executive -- declared that the sole cause of the Civil War was secession. Lincoln never stated that slavery caused the Civil War. Lincoln chose war to suppress what he deemed a rebellion in the Southern states. If the South embraced and espoused slavery and if the South stated that the institution, alone, justified war, it was ultimately the President of the United States, possessing absolute responsibility and duty as chief executive for the nation, who, to the contrary, declared war on the Southern states because of secession. As President, Lincoln declared that the South was guilty only of rebellion, and, without the consent of Congress and contrary to pleas from the Supreme Court, Lincoln raised an army and subsequently invaded the Southern states. Moreover, the decision to declare war or to suppress a rebellion, and to state what caused the Civil War, was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln himself; and he stated his position for war clearly. (See also: Civil War Causes, Southern States Secede, and Secession of the South History and President Lincoln, What Caused the Civil War, Slavery, South and States' Rights, and Southern Secession.)

Prior to April 15, 1861, seven Southern states, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas, had seceded from the Union. On April 15, 1861, Lincoln stated in his Call For Troops that the only cause of the Civil War was secession in the Southern states, and that troops were being called upon in order to "suppress the rebellion" and force the states back into the Union. Just 2 days after Lincoln's Call for Troops to raise an army and invade the South, Virginia seceded (April 17), followed by Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee. Kentucky, meanwhile, refused to recruit a single soldier for Lincoln's "wicked cause," and Maryland, a free state, was invaded by U.S. troops and placed under martial law, while Delaware, though of divided loyalty, did not attempt it. In Missouri, on October 31, 1861, a pro-CSA remnant of the General Assembly met and passed an ordinance of secession.

 

Lincoln, moreover, never stated publicly or in any document that abolishing the institution of slavery was why he called upon the troops, or to free the slaves was the cause of the Civil War. The Southern states had seceded, and Lincoln was now determined to suppress it. According to the president, secession was the cause of the Civil War.

 

The Five Civilized Tribes even aligned themselves with the Confederacy, and the Cherokee Nation in its formal declaration to unite with the Southern states leveled, among many, the following blistering accusations against Lincoln and the Union: “But in the Northern States the Cherokee people saw with alarm a violated Constitution, all civil liberty put in peril, and all the rules of civilized warfare and the dictates of common humanity and decency unhesitatingly disregarded. In States which still adhered to the Union a military despotism has displaced the civil power and the laws became silent amid arms. Free speech and almost free thought became a crime. The right to the writ of habeas corpus, guaranteed by the Constitution, disappeared at the nod of a Secretary of State or a general of the lowest grade. The mandate of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was set at naught by the military power, and this outrage on common right approved by a President sworn to support the Constitution. …Lincoln sent armies into Southern States to aid in subjugating a people struggling for freedom, to burn, to plunder, and to commit the basest of outrages on women; while the heels of armed tyranny trod upon the necks of Maryland and Missouri, and men of the highest character and position were incarcerated upon suspicion and without process of law in jails, in forts, and in prison-ships, and even women were imprisoned by the arbitrary order of a President and Cabinet ministers; while the press ceased to be free.” See also What Caused the Civil War? Slavery? States' Rights? Secession?

What Caused the Civil War, aka Causes of the Civil War

What Caused the Civil War?

The most controversial question regarding the conflict that claimed more than 620,000 Americans is: what caused the Civil War?

The Civil War caused more than 620,000 deaths, which was 2% of the U.S. population. The conflict produced more deaths than all previous U.S. wars combined. Even a brief introduction to the U.S. Civil War will prompt the student to ask, why was the Civil War fought? There are, however, two dominant positions: 1) slavery caused the Civil War, or 2) states' rights caused the Civil War.

In law, in debate, and in history we should view every subject in context and strive to examine as many facts as possible before arriving at any conclusion. When there are numerous facts available, it is prudent to avoid one or two documents or statements to support one's bias. Speculation and conjecture should be avoided, while the witnesses and their respective testimonies should be admitted and examined.
 

A quick overview is to reference the question to its era and participants. On one hand, we have the position that slavery was the only cause of the Civil War. On the other hand, we have the position that states' rights caused the Civil War. The argument for states' rights, as derived from the Tenth Amendment, includes the right for the state to secede from the Union. Secession was a direct challenge of state government verses national government. The Tenth Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights to the United States Constitution, was ratified on December 15, 1791, and it states that "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
 

The major participants during the Civil War were the state governments, the national government, and the president, so we will begin by discussing and defining the roles and responsibilities of each participant.
 

Who is the final arbiter when there are differences, disagreements, and conflicts between state governments and federal government?
 

The United States Supreme Court is the final arbiter in interpreting the U.S. Constitution and which law or government action violated it.
 

The Constitution established the Supreme Court as the highest court in the United States. The authority of the Court originates from Article III of the U.S. Constitution.

One of the Supreme Court’s most important responsibilities is to decide cases that raise questions of constitutional interpretation. The Court decides if a law or government action violates the Constitution. This is known as judicial review and enables the Court to invalidate both federal and state laws when they conflict with the Constitution. Since the Supreme Court stands as the ultimate authority in constitutional interpretation, its decisions can be changed only by another Supreme Court decision or by a constitutional amendment.

Judicial review puts the Supreme Court in a pivotal role in the American political system, making it the referee in disputes among various branches of the Federal, as well as state governments, and as the ultimate authority for many of the most important issues in the country.
 

The Supreme Court exercises complete authority over the federal courts, but it has only limited power over state courts. The Court has the final word on cases heard by federal courts, and it writes procedures that these courts must follow. All federal courts must abide by the Supreme Court’s interpretation of federal laws and the Constitution of the United States. The Supreme Court’s interpretations of federal law and the Constitution also apply to the state courts, but the Court cannot interpret state law or issues arising under state constitutions, and it does not supervise state court operations. See also What Caused the Civil War?

President Barak Obama Responds to Southern Secession, States Rights, Constitution, Supreme Court, and Civil War

Secession, States Rights, Constitution, Supreme Court, and the Civil War

Secession, States' Rights and Constitution: Our States Remain United

Obama Administration responds to secession: "Our States Remain United."

 

Introduction

 

President Barak Obama responds to Southern states

In 2012, individuals from 8 U.S. States filed petitions on petitions.whitehouse.gov requesting that Washington allow their respective State the right to "Peacefully withdrawal from the United States of America and create its own government." The official position of the White House is to respond to any and all petitions that have at least 25,000 signatures. The White House officially responded in 2013 to the petitions from the following States: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. In its official response, there are stark comparisons to 150 years ago when Abraham Lincoln addressed the Southern states on Secession. See also: President Lincoln on Secession and States' Rights and President Abraham Lincoln in his own words from Civil Rights to Secession.

What Caused the Civil War?

What Caused the Civil War?

The most controversial question is what caused the Civil War? But what did Lincoln say caused the conflict? See also What caused the Civil War? What did President Abraham Lincoln say caused the Civil War?.

 

Whether it be a major cause of list of causes of the Civil War, hopefully you will enjoy the read!

 

The Civil War caused more than 620,000 deaths, which was 2% of the U.S. population. The conflict produced more deaths than all previous U.S. wars combined. Even a brief introduction to the U.S. Civil War will prompt the student to ask, why was the Civil War fought? There are, however, two dominant positions: 1) slavery caused the Civil War, or 2) states' rights caused the Civil War.

 

In law, in debate, and in history we should view every subject in context and strive to examine as many facts as possible before arriving at any conclusion. When there are numerous facts available, it is prudent to avoid one or two documents or statements to support one's bias. Speculation and conjecture should be avoided, while the witnesses and their respective testimonies should be admitted and examined. 

A quick overview is to reference the question to its era and participants. On one hand, we have the position that slavery was the only cause of the Civil War. On the other hand, we have the position that states' rights caused the Civil War. The argument for states' rights, as derived from the Tenth Amendment, includes the right for the state to secede from the Union. Secession was a direct challenge of state government verses national government. The Tenth Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights to the United States Constitution, was ratified on December 15, 1791, and it states that "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." 

 

The major participants during the Civil War were the state governments, the national government, and the president, so we will begin by discussing and defining the roles and responsibilities of each participant. See also What Caused the Civil War? What did President Abraham Lincoln say caused the Civil War?